CHAPTER TEN
Whatever
Kristina's oils and potions and bath infusions were supposed to do for her
aura, Alexis had no idea. But the truth of the matter was, she felt marvelously
alive. Enough so that she even submitted even further to Kristina's
ministrations and let her do her hair and eyes. Upstairs, looking in the
mirror, she had to admit that the results were spectacular. She hardly
recognized her reflection in the mirror. Suddenly she was all eyes and
cheekbones and something indefinable had put a glow on her face…
She swept down the stairs, enjoying the feel of the cool, clinging, sensuous fabric against her skin. The phone rang and she walked over to the desk to answer it. The conversation was brief; the car Jax had sent for them was downstairs. "The car will be here in five minutes…and just for information purposes, Kristina, if you're the one that was rushing me, then why am I down here waiting for you?" Alexis laughed as her sister's sassy retort floated down the stairs to her.
Alexis' smile faded
somewhat as her eyes fell on the manila folder sitting on the desk. The papers
for Sonny. She glanced at her watch. She had promised that it would be
messengered out before ten. It was 9:45, so technically, she had time to get Sonny's
signature and have a messenger there within the quarter hour. Well, let's get it over with. She
thought. She made a quick call to her service, instructing them to be there
ASAP. She could leave the package downstairs at the door. Sonny's men were more
than efficient in seeing that anything that affected him was taken care of
diligently. Replacing the receiver, Alexis sighed and squared her shoulders as
she turned towards the door. Business first.
***
"Hi,
Johnny." Alexis said as she stepped into the hallway. "Sonny's expecting me."
"No.
He's not." Usually the perfect bodyguard who saw nothing and everything all at
once without giving any of it away, Johnny was definitely in a sharing mood
tonight. His gaze reflected nothing but approval. "No, Miss Davis, Mr.
Corinthos is definitely not expecting this you at all."
A compliment.
Johnny
had just given her a compliment. A grade A plus stamp of approval, no less. A
soft laugh escaped her and on a sudden whim, Alexis pirouetted lightly.
Johnny's eyes gave away his appreciation, even though he said nothing more.
Noting the folder in her hand, he anticipated her intentions, and knocked
lightly on Sonny's door. Hearing a muffled response, Johnny opened the door and
poked his head in as Alexis drew near.
"Ms. Davis to see you." he announced.
As Alexis passed by him,
she thought he might have said something, but she wasn't sure…did he say "knock
'em dead?"
She
didn't have much time to dwell on it though, Sonny was across the room, in
front of the fireplace, gazing into the flames. He turned and all the cool
collected words that she had had prepared flew straightaway out of her head. He
wasn't dressed for the evening yet, but still had on his grey silk robe and a
matching bottoms. He must have just stepped from the shower. His hair was still
curling slightly from the damp and his skin seemed to still hold a sheen to
it. Alexis could see the smooth
muscular curve of his chest where it gapped. Her eyes were drawn to that
enticing expanse of smoothly muscled olive skin. With an effort, she forced her
gaze away and up to his face before he could notice.
Sonny turned around at
the sound of the door closing, just as the first faint scent of gardenias
filled his senses. His eyes caught Alexis and he paused, taken by surprise.
This Alexis he hadn't seen before. Her body was encased in a dark ruby red
sheathe of a dress, subtly sparkling where the lights caught at it, lightly
outlining the lean but sensuous curves of her body even as it flared outward
from her hips. Her hair was pinned up in back, exposing the long slender
expanse of her throat leaving wispy strands to frame her face. Dangling
shoulder-dusting ruby drops completed the effect. But he hardly noticed that as
his eyes dropped unwillingly to her half-bared shoulders. There the dress clung
to her upper arms and led to a softly plunging neckline. He'd never seen Alexis
looking so…what was the word he was looking for? So regal. Sonny was reminded
of her semi-royal blood like he'd never been before.
That
thought caught him by surprise, like a shock of cold water. What had he been
thinking? He was a street rat, a criminal in a silk suit, but a criminal either
way. It was enough that Alexis was his friend. Maybe he shouldn't hope for
more… his age old war waged within him.
You think you good enough for a woman like this? Deke's voice sneered in his
head. Look at her…and look at you… You're worthless, you're nothing. You never
were and you never will be…He didn't realize that he'd gone silent and his
eyes gone dark. "You look very
nice, Alexis." Sonny said softly, the words sounding lame even as they came out
of his mouth. "Beautiful."
Alexis
couldn't read Sonny's expression. It looked like it was somewhere else… his
eyes…they were distant, as though he really wasn't seeing her at all. It didn't take long to figure out why. Just
the thought of seeing Carly in a few hours has got him. She thought. I'm
back to being his lawyer. And his friend. Inwardly she sighed. What
a foolish notion she'd had for just a moment. A foolish little fantasy, that's
all it had ever been… "Thank you,
Sonny." Her voice was as cool and collected as ever. "All I need is your
signature on these contracts and they can be on their way." She crossed the
room to his desk and withdrew the papers from the envelope. "I've taken the
liberty of sending for a messenger and they should be here momentarily. So if
you can do this, we can both be on our way."
Sonny
came to stand beside her as he reached for a pen. Thoughtlessly he scribbled his
name and initialed in the places she pointed out to him. Dismally aware of the
perfume rising up from her skin, his heart ached. It was different and yet a
perfect blend for her. Floral, but with a hint of spice and sweet and heavy
sensuality underneath. But he dared not do as his senses were telling him, pull
her into his arms and bury himself in it. He'd only end up hurting her. His
touch was destruction itself. Maybe it's better this way…" He dotted the final "i" and crossed the
last "t". "There you go, Alexis."
Both
of them reached for the papers at the same time, intending to put them back in
their envelope. Their hands met, but neither one of them would show the
electric reaction that the one's touch evoked in the other. In spite of their
individual resolutions, their fingers lingered a moment longer than necessary
before they fell away. In the wake of that supposedly simple touch, they were
both at a loss for words.
Alexis
resisted the urge to bite at her lower lip. "Well, everything is taken care of
then." She said briskly. You will
stay in control. You WILL stay in control. It was a mantra in her mind. "I'll take care of everything from
here. You have a lovely evening, Sonny." She turned away before he could see
the hurt in her eyes.
Before
he could say anything more, she was turning away from him and walking to the
door. Let her go… his head said.
He willed his hands to stay at his sides, before he reached out and stopped
her.
Alexis
stepped into the hallway, just as Kristina emerged from their door.
"The
driver just called; he's downstairs…" Kristina said. As they stepped onto the
elevator, she gave her older sister a long look, but wisely said nothing. The
elevator doors slid silently shut. Alexis gazed at her blurred reflection in
the doors. She was going to go to the club and have a good time.
Even
if it killed her.
